drink.jpgA team of Quebec researchers has uncovered a series of genes linking the response to stress and high blood pressure with alcoholism and tobacco dependence. If a person has that series of genes, he or she will be more prone to drink or smoke in order to cope with stress and high blood pressure, according to researchers.

“What that tells us is that it’s not only bad education or family behaviour that matters,” explained Dr. Pavel Hamet, who is leading the study of 120 families in the Saguenay Lac-St.-Jean region.

“The fight against alcohol and tobacco should not only be moralistic, but also give people ways to manage stress,” he said, adding that one in five persons has the predisposition. He gave his findings at the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress in Quebec City yesterday.

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